SSC CHSL Tier 1 2022 English Comprehension Questions with Solutions

Explanation

When converting direct speech to indirect speech, the reporting verb said to changes to told because it is followed by an object. The conjunction that is used to introduce the reported clause. The second-person possessive pronoun your refers to the listener (his daughter), so it changes to the third-person feminine possessive pronoun her. The modal verb will changes to its past tense form would because the reporting verb is in the past tense. The first-person pronoun me refers to the speaker (the father), so it changes to the third-person masculine objective pronoun him.

Explanation

A stoic is a person who can endure pain or hardship without showing their feelings or complaining, remaining completely indifferent to both the pleasures and pains of life. This term is derived from Stoicism, an ancient school of philosophy which advocated for the development of self-control, fortitude, and mental detachment from external circumstances to achieve a state of tranquil mind.

Explanation

The context of the passage immediately links the struggle of the e-commerce industry to shipping costs and order fulfillment times. Since shipping and order fulfillment are directly associated with the transportation and distribution of goods to the customer, the term delivery accurately captures the nature of these logistical challenges.

Explanation

The term extempore refers to a speech, performance, or presentation given without any prior preparation or planning. It is delivered on the spur of the moment, relying entirely on the speaker's immediate thoughts, spontaneous ideas, and natural speaking ability.

Explanation

The human ear is anatomically divided into three primary structural regions or parts, which are the outer ear, the middle ear, and the inner ear. Each of these segments plays a distinct and crucial role in the process of hearing and maintaining balance.

Explanation

When converting direct speech into indirect speech, the reporting verb said to is changed to told. The comma and inverted commas are replaced by the conjunction that. The first-person pronoun I changes to the third-person pronoun he to agree with the subject Lee. Since the reporting verb is in the past tense, the tense of the verb in the reported speech changes from simple present am to simple past was. Additionally, the adverb of time today is changed to that day. Applying these standard rules of narration gives the correct indirect sentence.

Explanation

The correct order of the sentence fragments is RPSQ, which forms a coherent and grammatically correct sentence.

The sentence begins with the subject introducer in part R, "my colleagues and I working in the University of Glasgow's", which naturally requires a noun phrase to complete the possessive noun "Glasgow's". Part P provides this with "bendable electronics and sensing technologies research".

The word "research" at the end of part P then connects seamlessly with the word "group" at the start of part S, completing the noun phrase "research group". Part S continues with the verb phrase "have now developed a system of holograms of".

Finally, the preposition "of" at the end of part S requires an object, which is provided by part Q, "people using 'aerohaptics', creating feelings of touch with jets of air".

When assembled in this sequence, the complete sentence reads: "my colleagues and I working in the University of Glasgow's bendable electronics and sensing technologies research group have now developed a system of holograms of people using 'aerohaptics', creating feelings of touch with jets of air".

Explanation

Correct Answer: D

The word is misspelled because it is missing the letter n before the letter g. The correct spelling of the present participle form of the verb burn is burning, which is formed by adding the suffix ing to the base word burn.

Explanation

The use of the possessive pronoun "Its" is grammatically incorrect in this context. The sentence requires the contraction "It's", which stands for "it is", to serve as the subject and verb of the main clause, making the correct phrasing "It's impossible to conduct".

Explanation

Hyperbole is a rhetorical device and figure of speech that uses extreme exaggeration or overstatement to make a point, create emphasis, or evoke strong feelings, and is not meant to be taken literally or seriously.

Explanation

The collocation "place orders" is the standard terminology used in commerce to describe the action of a customer purchasing goods or services. In the context of the e-commerce industry described in the passage, customers use the internet to buy products from various locations, which directly links to the subsequent discussion about shipping costs and order fulfillment.

Explanation

The active voice sentence is in the simple past tense, following the structure of Subject + past tense verb (V₂) + Object. To convert this sentence into passive voice, the object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence, followed by was or were and the past participle form of the verb (V₃). Since the new subject "the shutters" is plural, the plural auxiliary verb "were" is used with the past participle "locked", which gives the correct passive structure: Subject + were + past participle + by + Agent.

Explanation

The error lies in the word order of the phrase "fancy dress pink". In English grammar, descriptive adjectives, including colors, typically precede the noun they modify. Therefore, the color "pink" should either be placed before the noun phrase, making it "pink fancy dress", or it should be introduced using a preposition, as in "fancy dress in pink". Having the adjective "pink" directly follow the noun "dress" without a preposition is grammatically incorrect.

Explanation

The idiom "as hard as nails" is used to describe someone who is physically very strong and fit, or someone who is emotionally uncompromising, cold, and resilient. It signifies a high degree of physical or mental toughness, showing no weakness or sympathy.

Explanation

The sentence "These components can work independently" is grammatically and orthographically correct. The word "components" is spelled correctly with an "o" in the second syllable, and "independently" is spelled correctly with "e" in every syllable following the first "d". Additionally, "work" is spelled correctly, and the sentence concludes with proper punctuation.

Explanation

The phrase "has been increasing" is in the present perfect continuous tense, where "increasing" is the present participle. To modify the participle "increasing", an adverb must be used instead of the adjective "steady". The correct adverbial form is "steadily". Therefore, "has been steadily" is the grammatically correct choice to modify the verb. Additionally, the singular subject "The number of women" correctly agrees with the singular auxiliary verb "has".

Explanation

The noun inquiry refers to an official investigation or the panel conducting it. In legal and formal contexts, it is common to refer to the panel itself as the inquiry, which can hear evidence, testimonies, or statements. In this sentence, the inquiry functions as a collective noun representing the investigative body that heard reports or testimonies concerning the tumultuous nature of the relationship.

Explanation

The idiom "the whys and wherefores" refers to the complete set of reasons, causes, or explanations for a particular event, decision, or situation. In this phrase, "why" represents the cause, and "wherefore" is an older English term meaning the reason or purpose, making the entire expression synonymous with detailed reasons.

Explanation

The word enigmatic means difficult to interpret or understand, or full of mystery and secrets. Therefore, mysterious is the closest synonym because it also refers to something that is difficult or impossible to understand or explain.

Explanation

The word decimate means to destroy, ruin, or drastically reduce a large proportion of something. Similarly, to wreck means to cause the destruction of, ruin, or severely damage something. Both words share the core meaning of causing severe destruction or ruin.

Explanation

The sentence presents a conjectural alternative to explain the seemingly harsh actions of the gods. The adverb "perhaps" is used to express uncertainty or possibility, fitting grammatically and semantically after the conjunction "or" to introduce the alternative explanation that the gods may possess a deeper understanding or foresight than humans.

Explanation

The standard English idiomatic phrase is in terms of, which is used to specify which relation or aspect of a subject is being discussed. In the context of the sentence, it explains that the cost of convenience is specifically related to shipping expenses and order fulfillment times.

Explanation

In this context, the noun "time" refers to the duration or opportunity needed to perform an activity, which is an uncountable noun and must be used in its singular form. This noun is correctly followed by the to-infinitive "to watch" to specify the purpose or the action for which the time is required.

Explanation

In a religious context, an oblate is a layperson who associates themselves with a specific religious order or monastery. Unlike monks or nuns, oblates do not take formal monastic vows, nor do they live in the monastery. Instead, they commit to living a life inspired by the monastery's spiritual rules and values while remaining in their ordinary secular lives. Thus, an oblate represents a dedicated layperson within a monastic tradition.

Explanation

In biological classification, the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) provides authoritative taxonomic information on plants, animals, fungi, and microbes. The term species is the primary unit of taxonomy used to identify and classify distinct biological organisms. In this context, referring to more than sixty different taxonomic types of rats requires the biological term species to maintain scientific accuracy.

Explanation

The sentence describes the general size range of rats. The adverb typically is used to show what is common, usual, or characteristic for a particular group or species. In this context, it indicates that rats normally or usually measure 5 inches or longer, which fits the informative and factual tone of the passage.

Explanation

In the context of biology and natural science, finding a previously unknown animal species in its natural habitat is referred to as a discovery. The Bosavi woolly rat was first encountered by scientists during an expedition to the Mount Bosavi crater in Papua New Guinea in 2009, making "discovered" the grammatically and contextually correct word to fill the blank.

Explanation

The word "about" is used in this context as an adverb meaning "approximately" or "nearly" to indicate that the Bosavi woolly rat is roughly equivalent in size to a typical cat. This approximation is immediately followed by the precise measurement of 32.2 inches (82 cm) to provide the exact details, making the sentence grammatically correct and coherent.

Explanation

The blank is followed by the measurement "around 3.3 lbs. (1.5 kilograms)". Since pounds (lbs.) and kilograms (kilograms) are standard units of mass and weight, the verb "weighs" is the grammatically and contextually correct term to describe the weight of the Bosavi woolly rat.

Explanation

The blank requires a quantifier to modify the uncountable noun work in the phrase the server processing work. The quantifier much is used with uncountable nouns to indicate a large quantity of something. Using much of the server processing work correctly conveys that a significant portion of the uncountable work is being transferred to the cloud computing platforms.

Explanation

In the context of the passage, the word retain means to continue to have or keep possession of something. The sentence explains that even though merchants offload their server processing work to third-party cloud computing platforms, they still keep or preserve complete authority and customization capability over the appearance and user experience of their online stores. Therefore, retain is the grammatically and contextually correct verb that fits the blank.

Explanation

The possessive pronoun its is used to indicate ownership or association with a singular, non-human noun like the Blue House. The word it's is a contraction of it is or it has, which is grammatically incorrect in this context. Additionally, the present continuous tense triggered by the auxiliary verb is requires the present participle verb form practising to complete the predicate.

Explanation

The word "Agravate" is incorrectly spelt. The correct spelling is "aggravate", which requires a double 'g'. It means to make a problem, injury, or offensive situation worse or more serious, or to annoy or exasperate someone.

Explanation

The word ridicule refers to the act of making fun of someone or something in a cruel or contemptuous manner. Similarly, derision means contemptuous ridicule or mockery. Both words share the same meaning of expressing contempt or disapproval through laughter or scornful comments, making them synonyms.

Explanation

The word nadir refers to the lowest point in the fortunes of a person or organization, or the lowest point of any situation. Its opposite in meaning is climax, which represents the highest, most intense, or most exciting point of something, marking its peak.

Explanation

Correct Answer: D

The adjective "good" is followed by the preposition "at" when expressing competence, skill, or proficiency in a particular activity. Therefore, the phrase "good on" is grammatically incorrect and must be replaced with "good at" to make the sentence grammatically correct as "good at predicting".

Explanation

The sentence describes a sequence of past actions, indicated by the simple past tense verbs sharpened and started. To maintain tense consistency across the coordinate clauses, the verb following the noun lead must also be in the simple past tense. The simple past tense of the verb break is broke, making lead broke the grammatically correct choice to complete the clause.

Explanation

The sentence contains no spelling errors. All the words in this sentence, including take, issue, very, and seriously, are spelled correctly according to standard English vocabulary rules.

Explanation

The given sentence is in the Simple Present Tense, following the active voice structure: Subject + verb (s/es) + Object.

To convert a Simple Present Tense sentence into the passive voice, the formula used is: Object + is/am/are + third form of the verb (V3) + by + Subject.

In this sentence, the object is the plural noun "the windows", which requires the plural auxiliary verb "are". The past participle form of the verb "wash" is "washed". Applying these rules, the correct passive construction is: "The windows are washed every week by the maid."

Explanation

The introductory clause ends with the auxiliary verb "have", which requires a past participle to complete the present perfect tense. This is directly provided by the verb "been" at the start of part A. Part B logically follows part A because the pronoun "this" in "reasons for this" refers back to the action of being slow to adopt technologies. The noun "status" at the end of part B is qualified by the prepositional phrase "of both these professions" in part C, referencing the nurses and physicians mentioned at the start of the sentence. Finally, part D provides the locative modifier "within the hospital setting" to complete the phrase. Sequential alignment of ABCD yields a grammatically precise and coherent sentence.

Explanation

The passive voice construction requires the auxiliary verb "be" followed by the past participle of the main verb. In this sentence, the subject "The medieval knight" is singular and the context is in the past tense, which requires the singular past tense verb "was". The past participle of the verb "know" is "known". Combining these gives "was known", which correctly indicates that the knight was recognized or famous for his skills in horsemanship.

Explanation

When converting direct speech into indirect speech, the reporting verb "said" is in the past tense, which requires changing the tense of the reported speech. The modal verb "will" changes to its past form "would". The first-person pronoun "I" changes to "he" to agree with the subject of the reporting verb, and the second-person pronoun "you" changes to the first-person objective pronoun "me". Additionally, the conjunction "that" is used to connect the reporting clause with the reported clause. Applying these rules, the direct sentence becomes "He said that he would never hurt me."

Explanation

The idiom "a fish out of water" refers to a person who is in an unfamiliar, uncomfortable, or awkward situation because they are outside of their natural, usual, or accustomed environment. Just as a fish cannot survive or function properly outside of water, a person described by this phrase feels out of place and struggles to adapt to their current surroundings.

Explanation

The word knack refers to a special talent, skill, or natural capability to do something easily and well. The opposite of having a knack or skill for something is lacking the capacity or power to do it, which is defined as inability.

Explanation

The error lies in the subject-verb agreement within the relative clause. The relative pronoun "that" refers to the plural antecedent "algae and other marine microbes". Therefore, the verb following it must also be plural. The singular verb "produces" must be replaced with the plural verb "produce" to make the sentence grammatically correct.

Explanation

The sentence describes a general fact or habitual action, which requires the simple present tense for consistency with the initial verb "ride". Therefore, the present tense verb "sit" is required instead of the past tense "sat". Additionally, the possessive pronoun "its" is needed to indicate ownership of the movements, whereas "it is" or "it's" is a contraction that does not fit grammatically.

Explanation

The sentence begins with the main subject introduction in part S, which states that compostable plastic packaging is not a blanket solution, but. The conjunction but is logically followed by rather in part Q to present the alternative, stating rather one for specific, targeted applications as a majority of. Part Q ends with a majority of, which connects directly to the subject in part R, compostable plastics are more expensive than conventional. Finally, the adjective conventional in part R describes the noun plastics at the start of part P, completing the thought with plastics, and not available in sufficient quantities in India. This sequence creates a coherent and grammatically correct sentence.

Explanation

The phrasal verb set aside means to place something to one side or save it for future use. In culinary instructions and recipes, after preparing an ingredient by washing, rinsing, and draining it, it is standard practice to place it to the side while preparing other components of the meal or until it is needed in a later step of the cooking process.

Explanation

The term forces refers to organized groups of military personnel, such as troops, army, navy, or air force units. In the context of international relations and defense, the phrase military forces is a standard collocated term used to describe a country's military presence or stationed troops in a foreign territory.

Explanation

The word anomalous means deviating from what is standard, normal, or expected. Its direct antonym is customary, which refers to something that is commonly practiced, conventional, or usual, thereby representing the established norm.